Packaged folding casing

ABSTRACT

A folded casing, shirred to form a stick, is packaged in a packaging net ( 10 ). The two net ends ( 12, 13 ) which are opposite to one another are welded ultrasonically. A strip ( 14 ), consisting of the same material as the packaging net  10,  is also welded ultrasonically to at least one of the new ends  12  or  13.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a packaged folded casing which includes a casing shirred to form a stick which, after deshirring, can be stuffed with a product.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] In conventional processes for stuffing casings such as with sausage meat emulsion, known stuffing machines are used. The stretched flat casings which are tied off at one end and have, for example, a length from 100 to 180 cm, are softened in water to make them supple. The softened casings are pushed by hand onto a stuffing horn and shirred. The operating person must constantly carry out repeated gathering motions with the hand which are extraordinarily tiring. In the case of casing lengths of more than 1.80 m, casings become completely shapeless and formless owing to the premoistening. It becomes impossible to push a casing of this length onto the stuffing tube in the time available which is predetermined by the machine cycle. This is because the casing is stuck firmly to the stuffing tube so that it can no longer be manually shirred.

[0005] DE-A 43 14 949 discloses a shirred casing for individual products which is compactly packaged, thus avoiding the deshirring of the casing prior to stuffing. The shirred and compactly packaged casing can be held in the hand by the operator of a stuffing machine and placed on the stuffing horn without the casing needing to be shirred by hand. The deshirred casing in this case preferably has a length from 1.02 to 1.52 m and is no longer than about 1.78 m.

[0006] In the case of another known process which is likewise mentioned in DE-A 43 14 949 with reference to Section III of the publication “Sausage Casing Technology,” edited by Indel Karmas, published by Noyes Data Corporation, New Jersey (1974), long casing lengths are shirred to form a stick or a strand. The shirred strands comprise about 20 m of casing which is shirred or pushed together to a length of about 35 to 44 cm. The strand is packaged in a net which prevents deshirring of the strand and enables its subsequent softening in water to achieve the flexibility and extendibility of the casing in the shirred state. After softening, the packaging is removed and the strand is pushed onto the stuffing horn. In comparison to the use of individual casings, when strands are used, a structurally complex machine is necessary, since the casing must not only be clipped twice, cut and placed in loops by this machine, but also must be stuffed with emulsion. Since the strand has a much longer casing length than normal, twenty to fifty sausages can be produced from one strand by this machine.

[0007] In this process, there is no shirring of the casing by hand. However, it is disadvantageous that, for example, the stuffing horn diameter must generally be smaller than the diameter of stuffing horns for individual casings. Thus, for example, in the case of shirred casings of this type for a sausage having a diameter of 50 mm, typically a stuffing horn having a diameter of 28 mm or less is used, and in comparison thereto a thicker stuffing horn having a diameter of 36 mm can be used with the same diameter of the individual casings as the shirred long casing. To compact very long casing material to a length adapted to the machine, a shirring mandrel having a small diameter must generally be used. The problem of the small internal diameter of the shirred casing is further intensified during softening of the strands in water as a preparation for stuffing. During the softening, the strand swells, which leads to a further contraction of its open width and requires a still smaller stuffing horn. The use of a longer stuffing horn having a smaller diameter results in a slower throughput rate, increased fat smears and poorer particle determination. The ends of the nets which package shirred casings or sticks for being stuffed with product are customarily closed with metal or plastic clips. When the nets are opened there is the risk that these clips can pass into the product to be stuffed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] An object of the invention is to overcome the disadvantages of the known art described above. Another object of the invention is to provide a packaging for a folded casing of relatively long length which is stuffed with a product wherein the ends of the packaging are firmly closed without clips, cords or other closure means.

[0009] There has been provided according to one aspect of the present invention, a packaged folded casing which includes a folded casing at least partially shirred to form a stick which, after deshirring, can be stuffed with a product; and a packaging for the folded casing. The packaging includes a net having two ultrasonically welded net ends disposed opposite to one another. In a preferred embodiment, a strip is welded ultrasonically to at least one net end.

[0010] According to another aspect of the invention, there has been provided a method for filling a casing, which includes: soaking the packaged folded casing of the present invention until it is supple; removing the folded casing from the packaging; inserting the sausage casing onto a stuffing tube of a stuffing machine; and stuffing the casing with a foodstuff product.

[0011] Additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects, features and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0012] The present invention is described in more detail below with reference to the drawings. In the Figures:

[0013]FIG. 1 shows a diagrammatic side view of one end and a partially extended part of a folded casing,

[0014]FIG. 2 shows the turn-over end of the folded casing as described in FIG. 1 in the pleated state and tied off,

[0015]FIG. 3 shows a side view with the pleated end pushed on to the stick of the folded casing,

[0016]FIG. 4 shows a section along the line A-A of FIG. 3 of a folded casing packaged in a net, and

[0017]FIG. 5 shows a plan view onto a packaging according to the novelty in which a strip is welded ultrasonically to one net end of the packaging.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] The packaging of the casing of the present invention, which is shirred to form a stick, includes a net, the two opposite net ends of which are welded ultrasonically.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment, a strip is ultrasonically conjointly welded to at least one net end of the packaging.

[0020] In a further embodiment of the invention, the strip is preferably made of the same material as the packaging. Preferably, the strip is printed with a bar code, logo, company name, trade name, trademark and the like.

[0021] The invention achieves one advantage that, on recycling of the packaging, only the net needs to be disposed of, but no closure means such as clips, cords or the like. Also, the risk of a closure means being able to pass into the product to be stuffed is eliminated. It is also advantageous that a commercial reference and labeling of the folded casing can be applied without problems to the packaging.

[0022] FIGS. 1 to 3 show a folded casing as described, for example, in German Utility Model DE 296 06061 U1.

[0023]FIG. 1 shows a diagrammatic side view of part of such a folded casing 1. The folded casing 1 is pushed together in the right-hand part of the drawing to form a stick 11, from which an extended part 2 extends to the left and transforms into a front end 3. The stick 11 consists of cup-shaped folds 6 pushed into one another. The end 3 has two section lengths d and is divided into two halves through an axis m transversely to the longitudinal direction of the folded casing 1. The part 2 and the end 3 have creases 9 which come about owing to the fact that the end 3 and the part 2 of the folded casing 1 are firstly pushed into the stick 11 and are taken out from this for pleating and tieing off the front end 3 of the folded casing 1. However, the part 2 and the end 3 can be smooth, i.e., free of creases. The front end 3 of the folded casing 1 is turned over along the axis m transversely to the longitudinal direction of the folded casing 1, so that the two equally sized section lengths d and d come to lie one over the other. The section length d here is preferably at least 2 cm. The two section lengths d, lying one above the other, and the part 2 are then pleated, i.e., folded in the longitudinal direction of the folded casing 1 as can be seen diagrammatically in FIG. 2. The turned-over end 3 is tied off along an edge 5. This is achieved, for example, by a tie-off 4 in the form of a string or a cord which lies at the edge 5 of the turned-over pleated end 3.

[0024] The tie-off 4 in FIG. 2 may be achieved with or without loops, depending on whether suspension of the stuffed folded casing 1 is provided or if this is to be both transported and stored horizontally. The tie-off 4 is preferably located in front of the turned-over and pleated end 3 and acts during stuffing of the folded casing 1 as an inherent barrier, because the tie-of 4 lies at the edge 5 on the folded-over end 3 and is forced against the folded-over end 3 by the stuffing pressure exerted in the interior of the folded casing 1, but cannot be pushed out above this. The tie-off 4 permits a stuffing pressure of generally from 0.6 to 0.8 bar during the stuffing of the folded casing 1, without bursting or the front end 3 opening. It can be seen from FIG. 2 that the pleating with pleating folds 16 extends over the end 3 out to the part 2, the pleating folds 16 being generally oriented perpendicularly to the plane of the drawing just as are pleating folds 15 of the folded-over end 3. The end 3 is turned over on a combined shirring and tieing off machine and tied off by means of the tie-off 4. The pleating folds 15 and 16 are also applied by means of this combined shirring and tieing off machine.

[0025]FIG. 3 shows the casing 1 together with telescoped (i.e., shirred) and retracted parts 2. The part 2 which is extended in FIG. 1 is preferably inserted so far into the interior of the stick 11 that only the tied-off end 3 and a small section of the part 2 are situated outside of the stick 11. The outer diameter 2 r of the stick 11 is generally, for example, from 30 to 200 mm, in particular from 80 to 95 mm, while length 1 of the stick 11 is generally from about 80 to 90 mm. The inner diameter of the stick 11 is, in the latter case, preferably from 65 to 75 mm. At an inner diameter of preferably, for example, 70 mm of the stick 11, the folded casing 1 and the stick 11 are shirred on a shirring mandrel preferably having a diameter of 73 mm. To stuff a shirred folded casing 1 of this type, a stuffing tube having an internal diameter of, for example, 60 mm can be used. The folding density, given by the ratio of length of the unshirred casing 1 to the length of the stick 11, is generally in the range from 30 to 40. The outer diameter 2 r of the stick can be in the range from 30 to 200 mm.

[0026]FIG. 4 shows a section along the line A-A of FIG. 3. The folds 6 of the stick 11 are cup- and saucer-shaped, the individual folds having a height of up to about 20 mm. The folds are fitted together to form the stick 11. The folds 6 extending over the periphery of the stick 11 are bent inwardly, i.e., are curved in a concave manner towards the interior over the height of the periphery. The part 2 connected to the front end 3 of the casing 1 is pushed into the interior of the stick 11 and has the shape of a cup 8 having a curved bottom 7, the cup extending into the interior of the stick 11 and only the tied-off end 3 and the tie-off 4 projecting from the stick 11. For shipping the stick 11, the end 3 is also further forced into the interior of the stick 11 to save space. In FIGS. 3 and 4, the folded casing 1 is shirred to form a stick 11 and is essentially ready to process for moistening and subsequent stuffing of the folded casing on a stuffing machine. The high folding density of the stick 11 and the height of up to 20 mm of the individual folds 6 of the stick ensure a high shape and form stability of the stick 11 which can also be essentially retained even after relatively long premoistening, despite extension of the casing material. The casing 1 can generally have, for example, a diameter from 85 to 100 mm at the beginning of the stuffing process and, owing to the premoistening, is extensible to the extent that after completion of the stuffing process, the diameter can generally be from 115 to 120 mm.

[0027] The folded casing 11 is enclosed by a packaging 10 in the form of a net. Opposite net ends 12 and 13 of the net-shaped packaging 10 are welded ultrasonically, so that the previously customary use of metal clips or plastic clips for closing off the net ends is dispensed with. The net ends 12 and 13 are characterized by recesses 17 caused by welding heads or welding lugs of an ultrasonic welding device. A strip 14 may be welded ultrasonically onto the one net end 12 of the packaging 10. The material of which the packaging 10 and the strip 14 consist is generally the same, but different plastics can be joined together, provided that they can be welded together ultrasonically.

[0028] These are plastics which can not only be processed to filaments and nets manufactured therefrom, but can also be welded ultrasonically. These include, for example, plastics selected from the group consisting of HDPE, polyamides and polyethylene terephthalates.

[0029] The plan view of FIG. 5 shows the packaging 10 in net form in which one of the two net ends 12 and 13 is welded together with a strip 14. The strip 14 is printed, for example, with a trademark KALLE NALO®, a bar code and other information. Customarily, the packaging 10 is only welded to the strip 14 at one net end, here, for example, at the net end 13, while the other net end is open. As soon as the folded casing 1 is inserted into the packaging 10, the net end which is previously open is ultrasonically welded. Obviously, a strip 14 can be conjointly welded onto the second end which contains the same information as, or different information from, the strip which is already conjointly welded onto the other net end 13.

[0030] The packaged folded casing 1 is moistened and as soon as it is supple the packaging 10 is cut open and the folded casing 1 is pushed onto a stuffing tube. The stuffing pressure at which the sausage meat emulsion, cheese product, prepared meal, delicatessen meal, biscuit dough and other doughs or other product is stuffed into the folded casing 1 is generally between 0.6 and 0.8 bar.

[0031] Additional advantages, features and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details, and representative devices, shown and described herein. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0032] The priority document, German Patent Application No. DE 29821354.0, filed Nov. 30, 1998 is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0033] As used herein and in the following claims, articles such as “the,” “a” and “an” can connote the singular or plural. 

We claim:
 1. A packaged folded casing comprising: a folded casing at least partially shirred to form a stick which, after deshirring, can be stuffed with a product; and a packaging for the folded casing comprising a net having two ultrasonically welded net ends disposed opposite to one another.
 2. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a strip welded ultrasonically to at least one net end.
 3. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the strip comprises the same material as the packaging.
 4. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the strip is printed.
 5. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the strip is printed with a bar code, logo, company name, trade name, and/or trademark.
 6. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the strip is made from a different material from the packaging and wherein the strip and one net end are welded together ultrasonically.
 7. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the packaging is tubular and extensible and has a diameter in the range of from 30 to 200 mm.
 8. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the diameter corresponds to the diameter of the folded casing stuffed with the product.
 9. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the packaging comprises one or more plastics selected from the group consisting of HDPE, polyethyene terephthalates, and polyamides.
 10. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a strip welded ultrasonically to each of the two net ends.
 11. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the product which stuffs the folded casing is a sausage meat emulsion.
 12. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the folded casing includes a shirred portion and a non-shirred portion.
 13. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 12, wherein the non-shirred portion is pleated along the longitudinal axis of the casing and is folded back into the interior of the shirred portion.
 14. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the stick has an outer diameter of from 30 to 200 mm.
 15. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the length of the stick is from 80 to 90 mm.
 16. A packaged folded casing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the folding density of the folded casing is from 30 to
 40. 